“There is a demand for professionals who can analyze data, solve problems, think on their feet, and successfully manage projects. As graduate students, the skills we learn in the lab setting are highly translatable, but we need to know how to apply them in different settings.”
That quote is from an interview Safee did for a feature article when he graduated with his PhD in Biochemistry from Western in 2019. Since then, Safee has been working as a management consultant for Bain & Company. On this episode, Safee talks about his path from a purely science background to management consulting, his experience working at Sanofi Pasteur through the science internship program at Western, the skills he learned during his PhD that translate to his work at Bain, and more.
This episode was made possible by the generous support of the University Students’ Council at Western University.
Producer: Jay.
Timestamps:
(1:27); Educational background and current role
(4:07); Why switch from a master’s program to a PhD instead of finishing the master’s and THEN doing a PhD?
(8:25); How important is an undergrad honours thesis for getting into grad school?
(11:19); Tips for picking a great grad school project
(14:54); Why do a PhD? And how Safee got interested in management consulting
(23:55); How do you learn “the business stuff” that you’ll need to know to work in management consulting, coming from a purely science background?
(27:44); What’s it like working as a consultant at Bain?
(30:47); The skills you learn during your PhD that transfer over to consulting
(34:19); Why a non-traditional path after your PhD as opposed to academia?
(35:24); Does a master’s degree cut it for recruiting at the major management consulting firms or do you need a PhD?
(37:15); The questions undergrads should be asking themselves when considering a master’s or PhD program
(42:19); Overall advice for science undergrads
Link to the article referenced at the start of the description: http://bit.ly/3sVoGLO